Legal Opinions Concerning the Church of England contains the views of the Legal Advisory Commission of the General Synod, which gives legal advice to the General Synod, the Church Commissioners, diocesan registrars, chancellors, and other clerical and lay officers such as archdeacons and diocesan secretaries. It does not constitute a comprehensive volume on ecclesiastical law but is the jointly expressed views of the Commission on a wide range of legal matters of interest to the Church.
This eighth edition contains many previously unpublished Opinions as well as a comprehensive updating and revision of the contents of previous editions. It is an indispensible reference work for all practitioners and students of ecclesiastical law.
New or significantly revised Opinions include:
- The clergy and confidentiality
- Appointment of non-stipendiary ministers as incumbents
- Consecration of sites for 'green' burials
- Ownership of tombstones and monuments in churchyards
- Disturbances during services in cathedrals
- The right of a parishioner to be married in the parish church
- The legal responsibilities of PCC members
